A stepper (reduction projection exposure system) that is one type of semiconductor device fabrication apparatus is an apparatus that projects a pattern formed in a photomask, reticle, or the like onto a semiconductor wafer on which resist is applied while demagnifying the pattern by a projector lens.
Nowadays, as patterns have been manufactured with decreasing dimensions, a method of evaluating their performance by measuring or inspecting the formed pattern by a scanning electron microscope or the like is about to become the mainstream of semiconductor measurement and inspection. For example, in patent literature 1, a technique of evaluating the overlap of plural layers of overlapping patterns is proposed. An overlap between upper and lower layers is an important item of evaluation to make a decision as to whether or not interconnections between the upper and lower layers have been correctly made.
Furthermore, non-patent literature 1 discloses a technique which performs an exposure simulation on design data undergone OPC processing and which extracts hot spots.